Someone I Used to Know
by Blaze0843
Summary: Sometimes, as you journey across the Unova Region, you find that people change. Even those who are closest to you.


My eyes just stared at the ceiling, my back being supported by the rock that was my mattress. But I had grown accustomed to such a cheap thing, and I no longer felt the aches I had when I first bought it. The crack that had once dropped drips of water onto my face in my sleep, constantly waking me, had just recently been fixed. To be honest, I don't know why. I was leaving today, after all. There was no point in fixing a leak in a room that was not going to be used for the next year or so. I wrapped my arms up, fluffing my pillow and arching my back in a stretch. Cheren and Bianca should be here any minute now. What was taking those two so long?

"You've got the same thing on your mind, huh?" Darky, my older brother, chuckled as he stretched his legs out on the hardwood desk filled with cracks from his previous mishandling of it.

"Yeah, but you're not supposed to put your feet on that desk." I sit up, staring at the notebook in my lap. "It's going to break under your shoes one day." My coy smile didn't catch him off-guard, but I still attempted to anyway.

Darky rolled his eyes and shrugged, taking his feet off the desk and swiveling around to face me. "Alright, alright, yeesh. You're turning into Mom." He sarcastically joked, crossing his arms and staring at the glass case next to him, sitting delicately on the broken desk. Four Pokeballs sat in the cushioned seats, just waiting for them to be picked up by their new trainer. I itched to just open it now, but I knew we both had to wait for our friends to arrive. We needed to start all at the same time, so it would be a more... memorable memory? Yeah, that sorta sounds right.

"If I'm turning into Mom, then you'd best hope you don't turn into Dad." I coyly say, narrowing one of my brows. My eyes then turn back to the notebook in my lap, a clean crimson red one with pages crisp white. Over time, those pages would turn from a clean slate white to an adventure-filled yellow. Yes, that was the notebook I'd write all of our adventures down in. I wanted to tell a story one day, and I figured an adventure is just the kind of inspiration and experience I needed. Of course, it wasn't the only reason I was beginning this new chapter of my life. Darky has wanted to become a Trainer ever since Dad left to go live his dream. I didn't want to stay behind with just Mom, so I decided that I'd go with him. And then, after we decided that, Cheren and Bianca wanted to go as well. It was sort of a chain reaction.

"Ooh, snappy are we, Scorch?" Darky laughed, rubbing the glass of the case in anticipation. Almost as if he had clairvoyance, a faint yelling of, "Wait up, wait up, wait up!" came from the first floor of our house. Bianca, and exactly three and a half minutes late. I assumed Cheren was with her, as I heard a heavy panting along with that, and, judging by her excitement and rush, it couldn't have been her.

The body of a blonde girl appeared at the foot of the stairs, clutching onto the railing to keep from tumbling onto Darky and just barely stopping herself. She grinned, trying to act as calm as possible, even though she was terrible at doing so. It was just impossible for her to contain her excitement, and I really couldn't blame her. "Soooo sorry I'm late! Really, really sorry!"

"It's fine, really." I quickly interrupted, just to stop her from rambling. This time, I stood up from my bed, placing my red notebook and Pikachu Pen in the sack that hung around my waist.

"Well, look who finally decided to show up. I was afraid I'd have to keep the extra Pokemon for myself." Darky joked, swiveling around to face her, opposite from me. Another voice came from behind Bianca, and Darky and I instantly recognized it to be Cheren.

"Geez, Bianca, could you run any faster?" Cheren groaned, treading up the stairs slowly in a loss of breath. His legs seemed weak like jelly, and it seemed as if he was about to collapse. I offered for him to sit on my bed with a gesture of my hand, and he gratefully stumbled over and plopped down.

"Uhuh!" Bianca stated, the intention of the rhetorical question sailing completely over her head with a goodly measure of clearance. I mentally slapped myself, but didn't do anything physically or out-loud to make her feel bad. However, Cheren rolled his eyes, although Bianca didn't even seem to notice.

"So, are we finally ready to open this darn thing? I was almost ready to open it without you two." Darky said impatiently, assuming a more comfortable position in the chair, facing the desk. He moved the case filled with Pokeballs directly in front of him, and all four of us gathered around the case in anxiety and excitement.

"It arrived at Darky's and Scorch's house, so they should naturally receive first pick." Cheren concluded, fixing his glasses atop his face. Bianca nodded in agreement, hands clasped to keep herself from bouncing in joy, staring intently at the case.

"Well, Scorchy?" Darky motioned towards the case in front of him, as if he wanted me to open it. I have no idea why, but I shrugged and approached, feeling the glass of the case before pressing the red button beneath it. Smoke puffed out of the thing, filling up the room for only a few seconds before it vaporized in the air. Four shining Pokeballs gleamed in the unnatural light of my room, just waiting for my to pick one. However, before I could pick something, I noticed a note sitting on top, yellow and wrinkled as if it had been waiting for this moment for years.

"Read it, read it!" Bianca encouraged, leaning over Cheren in excitement, much to his annoyance.

I nodded and unfolded the paper carefully, taking my time to feel its texture and wrinkled text. The words started out slow, but I gradually began to pick up the pace and voice:

_Dear Dark, Scorch, Cheren, and Bianca,_

_It's amazing it's been so long since you four started thinking about becoming trainers, huh? Well, inside these cases lies four Pokemon, and one of these Pokemon will become your partner! Choose carefully, because this Pokemon will be the one to accompany you through everything in your adventures. _

_Alright then, I'll let you get right to it! The Pokemon that lie within this case are as follows, from left to right: Eevee, Houndour, Trapinch, and Riolu. These are all very rare starters, and it took a lot to be able to get these. Be sure to have fun on your adventures, okay? Meet me at the lab after you've chosen your starters! _

_Prof. Juniper_

"Oh man, this is soooo cool!" Bianca jumped with glee, gazing over the Pokeballs in determination. "They all look and sound soooo cute!"

"Come on, Bianca," Cheren scolded, fixing his glasses a second time in irritation, "the best kind of Pokemon are the ones that are strong and mysterious." He could be a bit of a mood-killer, but I was able to tolerate him at most times.

"Well, Scorchy?" Darky nudged me with his elbow, no more words needed to be spoken as I realized I had to now choose my starter. A tough decision, since they were all good choices.

"Huh... Eevee, Houndour, and Trapinch, and Riolu..." The routines went through my head of each type: Eevee, a normal type Pokemon, but it can evolve into many different types. Houndour: a dual type Fire and Dark. Trapinch: a ground type, but later evolves into a dual Ground and Dragon type. That could be extremely useful. But there was also Riolu, an extremely rare Fighting type. Man, all of these choices were too cool to be able to choose.

"Uhm..." I stuttered," I choose... Riolu." I smiled, picking up the last Pokeball in my hands. I stared at the red orb, knowing the Pokemon within was mine, my starter, and I could finally begin my—our journey.

"Riolu, huh? Okay, well, I choose Trapinch!" Darky stated, picking up the Pokeball next to the empty space. His eyes seemed to gleam with pride as he held it tightly in the palm of his hand.

"Figures. That's the one I wanted." Cheren sighed and shrugged his shoulders. "Oh well, beggars can't be choosers. I suppose I'll have to go with-"

"I pick Eevee!" Bianca suddenly shouted, brushing Cheren aside and grabbing the very first Pokeball. Her motion was so swift that it almost smacked Darky in the face, and he had to make a quick decision in order to dodge. She pulled back the red orb, jumping up and down in excitement.

"Really, Bianca?" Cheren groaned and rolled his shoulders in irritation. "Whatever. I wanted Houndour anyways to begin with." Something told me he was lying, but I had no right in accusing him of such a thing... even though it was true.

"Okay, now that we have our Pokemon, we should have a battle!" Bianca suddenly perked up, and my eyes went wide with shock. What did she just say? A battle?

"Bianca, I don't think that's a good idea..." I tried to sound as soft as I could, despite my shock. "I mean, not only are our Pokemon weak right now, but we are indoors. Our room is going to be completely messed up."

"Oh, don't be such a stickler!" Bianca didn't seem fazed at all by the rejection of her idea, and quickly threw the Pokeball. A red haze surrounded the being, until it was made out to be an Eevee. It chirped in happiness, its personality obviously matching hers from the first moment I laid eyes on it.

"B-Bianca..." I laughed nervously, rubbing my temple in frustration. However, Darky seemed to jump at the idea, immediately throwing out the Trapinch he had just taken from the glass case. A red-brown creature appeared from the Pokeball, a color similar to that of the Pokeball's top case. It was tiny and short, and it seemed as if it was going to be a very slow Pokemon. Darky didn't even seem to notice his Pokemon's possible strategic flaws.

Cheren sighed and crossed his arms, obviously irritated by their rash decisions, but ultimately decided to hold himself against speaking. It seemed pretty difficult for him, since I could practically see the stress lines above his brows.

"Okay then, I guess Dark's my opponent, huh?" Bianca gave a little twirl, a smile plastered across her face from ear-to-ear. Dark had a cunning grin on his face, ready to take her down and win his first battle. I just sat on my bed, a pen in my hand, and began to write down.

"Okay, Eevee, let's go for a Quick Attack!" Bianca shouted, and Eevee easily made it to the other side of the room with amazing speed, mainly since the space wasn't too big. All you could really see was a flash of white behind it's body, slamming into the Trapinch with tremendous force and speed. However, the Trapinch seemed unhurt by the attack, shrugging it off with great defense, its shell seemed shining.

"Nice! Use Bite, Trapinch!" Darky commanded, and the brown Pokemon leaped forward with jaws open wide, its maw lined with sharp teeth. It clamped down on the Eevee, hanging on for dear life as the dog-like Pokemon, tried to shake it off.

_While Eevee seems to have a tremendous amount of speed and agility, Trapinch can easily hold its own against its somewhat weak attacks. _

"Eevee, let's go for another Quick Attack!" Bianca threw her arm in emphasis, and the Pokemon responded in kind, an attack that seemed to have more power than the last time. It managed to knock the Trapinch off its feet, actually sending it onto its back and causing it to become trapped.

"Oh... crap! Trapinch, get back on your feet!" But no matter how hard the little Pokemon tried, it couldn't roll over. It was like a turtle trapped on its shell.

"Eevee, Tackle!" The Pokemon did as it was told, ramming into the Pokemon's side and sending it across the room. It smacked into the wall, fainting on impact.

"Oh crud..." Darky sighed in distress and returned the Pokemon to its ball. However, his sorrow was quickly replaced by a smile, and he nodded to Bianca in support. "Nice job, Bianca! I guess that little dog has a lot more power than it seems."

"I guess so!" Bianca smiled, repeating the action with her Eevee, and a red haze surrounded the creature and returned it to its Pokeball within. "You know what? Scorch and Cheren should have a battle as well!"

I expected her to say that, but it didn't help soften the impact. "Bianca, my room is already a mess." I sighed, looking around at the pawprints on the floor. "I don't want to mess it up any more." Cheren seemed to nod in agreement.

"Oh, c'mon! If you don't battle, your Pokemon won't grow! And besides, the room is already messy, so it won't matter if it gets even more messed up." While I had to admit she had a point, I didn't like it. But still, I suppose I could just send out Riolu and see what it could do.

"I... I guess it wouldn't hurt..." I shrugged, sending out the Pokemon onto the wooden floor. A blue Pokemon with an incredible aura that seemed to have an effect on me even. While it entered with its eyes closed, it slowly opened its eyes extremely mysterious-like. It had this I'm-too-cool-for-you attitude to it, and it gave me a little glare. Ugh... why did I have a feeling I didn't make the right starter choice?

Cheren shrugged as well, throwing out his Houndour. The black and red Pokemon seemed all fired-up, no pun intended, and just ready to get this battle underway. While I automatically had the advantage, Riolu being a Fighting type and Houndour being a dual Dark type, it didn't seem as if Riolu had any respect for me.

"Okay, Riolu, let's just start with Force Palm!" However, the Riolu didn't seem to budge, ignoring my command with a huff and a turn of its head. "Er... Riolu...?" I said, confused.

"Looks like Riolu doesn't seem to like you." Cheren sarcastically stated, fixing his glasses. Geez, how many times does he have to fix those? He snapped dramatically, his eyes closed in a cool-like manner as he did so. Maybe I should've picked Houndour; Cheren and Riolu had almost the exact same personality. "Houndour, use Ember." Red flames sparked from the mouth of the Pokemon, spitting it out in furious sparks.

"Riolu, dodge!" I yelled out, but he didn't even seem to notice me. Instead, it took the blow, which seemed to do a ton of damage. I saw it recoil in pain, but he managed to somehow hold his ground. "Force Palm!" I called out, but instead, it ran forward, an aura surrounding him as it lashed out with its palm. However, it wasn't Force Palm. It was Counter.

The damage dealt to it was doubled, and Houndour went down fast. Fainted... in one blow? Riolu was that powerful? Maybe that was why it didn't seem to respect me. Wait... it was a he, wasn't it—he?

He huffed in frustration, waiting for me to return him to his ball. I sighed and did so, the light returning him back to his ball. Cheren seemed distraught that he lost, but impressed at the power of the Riolu.

"Perhaps I should've gone with Riolu, if you didn't already take him." Cheren joked, but I just did my best to smile. Bianca and Darky seemed excited to get going to the lab, so I just walked towards the stairs.

"And, by the way, thanks for messing up my room." I said jokingly, a new smile across my face. Bianca took the lead down the stairs, with Cheren calling from behind her, "Don't forget to apologize to Scorch's and Dark's mom!" The two of us just rolled our eyes and followed them down, descending to the beginning steps of our journey.

But first, I'd have to figure out how to get this Riolu to like me.


End file.
